“Short and spicy”, “married or dead”, those were the parameters Louisa May Alcott was given on how to write women and end her stories in the 1850’s. Academy Award nominated director Greta Gerwig brings Alcott’s “Little Women” back to life 25 years after it’s last theatrical treatment that starred Winona Ryder and Susan Sarandon. Short […]
I have serious questions about the critical reactions coming from the Telluride Film Festival. Numerous times recently critics there, who got the first crack at some of the most anticipated fall season films, oversold expectations. All that to say that James Mangold is the kind of director you can usually count on. His films “Walk
Steven Spielberg, compelled by the parallels between 1971’s Pentagon Papers leak to The New York Times/Washington Post, and our current administration, he rushed new film The Post ahead of his expensive new sci-fi fantasy Ready Player One (2018). The Saving Private Ryan director brings film icons Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks together on the screen
After her relentless on-screen presence, playing the same characters in every movie, Greta Gerwig makes her directorial debut. The original screenplay based on her love of home in Sacramento, is what you would expect from the “Mistress America” actress. Yet, somehow with Oscar nominated Saoirse Ronan (“Brooklyn”) playing a version of Gerwig, it’s far more
Breaking up is hard to do, and it’s shown to be so in spades for the couple in The Lovers. Michael and Mary’s marriage is clearly on the rocks—and according to their son has been so for years. They’ve reached a state of dispassionate regard for one another, neither seeming to realize that their partner
“In keeping with Channel 40’s policy of bringing you the latest in ‘blood and guts’, and in living color, you are going to see another first—attempted suicide.” Christine is a powerful film about the effects and too often untreated form of depression, if that’s in fact what news reporter Christine Chubbuck was suffering from. Rebecca
Most of the time, I can spot a first-time feature film director without looking. More often than not, those directors come from short films. The reason I can spot this is the simplicity in the narrative, which is what Imperium drowns in. Directors like Jeff Nichols make small-budget films feel humongous in scope on a
Logan Lerman has long been a rising star in Hollywood. His first big role alongside Christian Bale and Russell Crowe in 3:10 to Yuma led him the leading role in the Percy Jackson franchise. It wasn’t until the indie hit The Perks of Being a Wallflower that his talent was noted by critics. A stand
Filmmaker Todd Solondz was the first director to truly scare me with a film. No he isn’t a horror director, but a button pusher. Solondz writes and directs with vivid and often taboo subject matter to shock the audience. His early work Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995) and Happiness (1998), were cult classics that put